Team finds its feet
are still great.
But Newcastle’s performance took everyone by surprise and, like the Warriors, more evidence is required to determine how much last year’s wooden spooners have improved.
Indeed, it is easy to imagine Warriors teams of recent years crumbling under the pressure as the Knights stormed back to take the lead.
However, they at least showed enough composure and mental toughness to escape with a win.
Was it a convincing performance? No, but it’s a start. Defensively, they remain a work in progress although there has been a noticeable improvement defending their line. There was also plenty to like about the way they rebounded from a slow start against Melbourne and went set for set for 70 minutes before ultimately falling away.
That is the biggest concern for Kearney, though.
If there has been a common theme over the opening two performances it is the Warriors’ tendency to fall in and out of the games.
In both matches they enjoyed strong periods of play only to concede the momentum with a simple mistake, poor kick or a lapse of concentration in defence.
Again, a lack of consistency is nothing new for this club and as Kearney has so often said since taking the job, it is a journey to finding it.
Just how long that takes is the $64,000 question that not even the coach himself can answer.
‘‘Melbourne have been that way [the finished product] for quite some time hence why they play in the finals every year, top four and what have you,’’ Kearney said after Friday’s defeat.
‘‘For us, that’s the journey we’re on. In terms of a distance, I couldn’t tell you how far but we’ll be getting there.’’
For now, though, the Mt Smart rollercoaster is very much still open for business.